Tomb Raider: Movie Review
Few female heroines in pop culture possess the iconic swagger and look of Lara Croft. Originally a video game character from the late ’90s, Lara Croft has been the star of over 14 games in the last two decades, as well as two movies leading up to the 2018 reboot “Tomb Raider.” The original films saw a spy-like tech-savvy Lara in spandex, dealing with fantastical and magical tombs while spewing generic action movie one-liners through a horrible English accent. The film capitalized on the suave-almost bond like irresistibility that was a big part of who Lara Croft was at the time.
But times change, and a character can do the same thing only so much before becoming predictable. Then, 2013 saw the gritty video game reboot of “Tomb Raider”. It brought about a much more visceral origin story about Lara’s transition from a young woman to globe-trotting, action-craving, empowered explorer we’ve known and loved for so long. 2018’s “Tomb Raider” takes cues from this interpretation, foregoing the gadgetry and magic for a much more grounded, sympathetic, and violent story. The result is an uneven movie that does more right than wrong.
The film begins with the introduction to Lara (Alecia Vikander) who is struggling to make ends meet while still coping with the disappearance of her father (Dominic West). She eventually finds evidence that suggests where her father may have gone, and so she sets out to find him. She hires a captain named Lu Ren (Daniel Wu) to ferry her to the island where her father went, and soon the two find themselves shipwrecked and in captivity of a man named Matias (Walton Goggins) who works for an organization called “Trinity.” The company is trying to excavate a tomb and capture a supposed magical item that will allow them to control the world, the same item her father was searching for when he disappeared.
The film lifts many plot points and set pieces from the 2013 game. If you played it when it came out, you’ll find a lot of familiar ground. The movie is clearly inspired by and lends some of its roughly two hours run time to showing off action set pieces, plot points, characters, and even Lara’s look straight from the game. It feels gratifying being able to identify when Norwegian director Roar Uthuag is referencing a moment from previous titles, be it from the games or the original films.
However, you definitely do not need to be familiar with any of that to enjoy this film. Aside from a slow first act, the action moves at a brisk, consistent pace, and is bookended with two solid, if slightly underdeveloped subplots. The relationship between her and her father is strong enough, for example, due in part to some fantastic acting done by both Alecia Vikander and Dominic West. However, the suggested love between Lara and Lu Ren is not developed nearly enough to warrant the two constantly looking at each other like they are.
Luckily, there aren’t really any other subplots. It’s a streamlined action movie, and it’s all the better for it. Speaking of action, “Tomb Raider” basks in the hell that Lara goes through here. She rides a torn parachute through a forest only to hit a tree, and have a branch impale here side, and then remove it herself. She takes a beating from one of Matias’ goons before drowning him as he gasps for air. She even suffers gunshot wounds and still overcomes every obstacle with a stony face of determination. It’s well-choreographed, the CGI is never below par, and Vikander’s grunts, screams, and tears sell her pain and struggles better than any other actress I have ever seen. She’s perfectly cast here, and she makes every high-stakes scene feel as real as it looks.
The main villain is probably the weakest part of this film. Trinity, who is essentially the Illuminati, aren’t developed at all, and so we’re left with a secondary villain to carry the weight. Actor Walton Goggins, who's played fantastic villains in TV shows like Sons of Anarchy and Justified is given good motivation for his ruthlessness, and I sympathized with him quite a bit. He’s not evil at all, but unfortunately, the film tries to paint him as such as he guns down innocent lives without hesitation, but that’s only because he’s been on the island, away from his family for so long, and just wants to go home and be with them. Regardless of inconsistent writing, he’s still a pleasure to watch on screen.
“Video game movie” is a dirty term these days. If it carries that title, it historically ends up being a bad interpretation of the Source material. 2016’s Assassin’s Creed, 2005’s Doom, and 1995’s Mortal Kombat are just a few examples that always get brought up when the topic is addressed. 2018’s “Tomb Raider” is absolutely the best “video game movie” yet, and its origin story approach, compounded with its no-nonsense story-telling and insanely visceral action set pieces makes this a strong outing for one of Pop-cultures most iconic characters.
4/5
